Pininfarina 2uettottanta: 2010 Geneva Auto Show

GENEVA — Pininfarina's fluid — and oddly named — 2uettottanta is nothing less than an homage to the legendary Alfa Romeo Duetto roadster made famous in the classic film The Graduate. Created to celebrate the coachbuilder's 80th birthday, as well as Alfa's centenary, the 2uettottanta also lays the groundwork for a future Alfa spider.

The 2uettottanta — the name is a combination of the Italian words for "duet" and "80" — is a two-seater that evokes images of the original Pininfarina-designed Duetto, but rendered in a modern idiom.

Pininfarina has designed the car to accommodate a turbocharged 1750cc engine mounted longitudinally, much like the 1968 Alfa Romeo 1750 Veloce, known familiarly to Italians of that generation as the Osso di Sepia — the Cuttlefish. A dual-clutch gearbox has been adapted on the new car.

The 2uettottanta features thin LED headlamps, a carbon-fiber front splitter and modest rollover bars behind the seats. The showcar has been fitted with Brembo carbon-ceramic discs as well as alloy rims designed in a five-spoke Alfa pattern and shod with specially designed Dunlop low-profile tires.

The cockpit gets a pair of hand-stitched leather sport seats and a flat-bottom three-spoke steering wheel with paddle shifters.

Inside Line says: And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson. — Paul Lienert, Correspondent